News

February 16, 2018 | Israeli cybersecurity company Silverfort won the top spot in the Cybersecurity Excellence Awards’s Multi-Factor Authentication category, the company announced. The annual awards “honor individuals, products and companies that demonstrate excellence, innovation, and leadership in information security.” The Tel Aviv-based company, founded in 2016, developed a “platform that can seamlessly deliver strong authentication to every sensitive user, device and resource, across on-premise, cloud and hybrid environments,” without changes to user devices and servers. Silverfort co-founder and CEO Hed Kovetz said in a statement that the company was “honored to receive this award, which further validates our vision. We believe that user authentication must be reinvented to fit the current technology environment. Regular authentication solutions can no longer handle the scale, diversity and dynamic nature of today’s networks – integration becomes endless and many sensitive resources are left exposed. We present a new breed of authentication products that can instantly apply strong authentication across entire networks and cloud environments.”
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Israeli Startup CommonSense Robotics Raises $20 Million

February 16, 2018 | Israeli startup CommonSense Robotics announced that it raised $20 million in a Series A funding round this week led by Playground Global, and previous investors including Aleph VC and Eric Schmidt’s Innovation Endeavors. The Tel Aviv-based company aims to help online grocery retailers offer on-demand, one-hour deliveries using robotics and artificial intelligence. The funds will be used to expand the startup’s global operations. The company says its solutions enable retailers to shorten the supply chain with Micro-Fulfillment-Centers where robots sort and process inventory, and which are in close proximity to customers. CommonSense Robotics CEO and co-founder Elram Goren tells Techcrunch, “Our AI software breaks the order down into robot tasks, and finds the right robots to complete those tasks. We have robots that are capable of moving boxes (totes) around extremely efficiently and at high speeds. Our various types of robots will bring the right totes of products to a stationary human ‘picker’ who in turn packs the order, which is then sent by robots towards the delivery interface where orders are packed into a van or scooter for dispatch”. The company is set to deploy the robots in its first fulfillment center in Tel Aviv over the next three months, VentureBeat reports citing a statement from CommonSense, with plans to launch five spaces in the US and the UK in 2018.
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WeWork Relaunches Early-Stage Startup Accelerator WeWork Labs

February 15, 2018 | WeWork, the international co-working space giant co-founded by Israeli Adam Neumann, with 212 locations and more than 200,000 members, has relaunched its WeWork Labs accelerator program with 27 spaces secured in 16 markets for 2018, according to a report in Tech Crunch. The WeWork Labs program ran in 2011, but was neglected as the company focused on other initiatives. With the relaunch, WeWork wants to offer very early stage startups a place to work and learn. The company has already opened its first location at 205 Hudson in New York City and will open its second in the Soho West office on March 1st. WeWork Labs will be run by the company’s former Head of Digital Roee Adler. While most companies in an accelerator might pay for inclusion and space with equity, WeWork will continue its rent-based formula by asking companies to pay for space at a rental fee determined before membership. WeWork is setting up a loose curriculum where members will receive access to educational resources and courses. The company will also hold small group sessions and bring in guest speakers for discussions and lectures. There is no graduation date, although WeWork members and community members will work towards an established end goal. According to the report, the company expects community managers at each WeWork Labs location to be “potential mentors, vendors, customers or collaborators.” WeWork Labs does not want to compete with other accelerators, but does want to partner with as many organizations as possible. They are also looking to customize each program based on location of the WeWork Labs facility.

WeedMD Partners With Technion On Cannabis Database Project

February 14, 2018 | Canadian medical cannabis producer and distributor WeedMD has announced it has joined the Cannabis Database Project led by Israel’s prestigious Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. The two groups “will be collaborating in the research of cannabinoid and terpenoid profiles of 25 of WeedMD’s cannabis strains,” a statement said. The Technion has already profiled more than 150 strains, including all of the strains currently available under Israel’s regulated medical cannabis market. The data collected from this research will be added to an international database that associates pharmacological effects used to determine effective cannabis treatments for clinical purposes in Israel. The Cannabis Database Project aims to produce an integrated database with both clinical data on cannabis patients as and data on cannabis usage history for patients in Israel and abroad. Data from growers, HMOs, and other sources will be used for analyses aimed to identify specific treatments and organize them on a website for patients and doctors. “WeedMD is in a unique position to contribute data for our research studies and we’re proud to welcome them to our Cannabis Research Project,” said Dr. David Meiri, Head of the Laboratory of Cancer Biology and Cannabinoid Research at Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, who noted that members of the WeedMD team were recently hosted in Israel for important discussions on knowledge transfer and the collaboration.

Israeli Cyber Firm Perception Point Raises $8M For US Expansion

February 14, 2018 | Israeli cybersecurity startup Perception Point, announced that it raised $8 million in a Series A funding round, led by Pitango Venture Capital along with State of Mind Ventures (SOMV) and Korea Investment Partners (KIP). The Tel Aviv-based company, founded in 2015, said it will use the funds to expand its global presence and product portfolio. Perception Point specializes in cyber threat detection and provides cloud and email solutions. It claims to have developed technology that “intercepts advanced attacks at the earliest possible stage of execution.” Perception Point CEO Yoram Salinger said in a statement, “Companies across industries are undergoing a transformation. As more and more move to the cloud, they require security solutions that are equivalent in terms of speed, scale and flexibility, while also being effective against the more advanced types of threats. At Perception Point, we saw an opportunity to serve both requirements – fusing the flexibility of a cloud solution with the threat visibility only possible at a CPU level.” Rami Kalish, the managing general partner and co-founder of Pitango Venture Capital, will join the company’s board of directors, Perception Point announced. SOMV’s Pinhas Buchris, a former managing director of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, has been a member of the board since 2015 when Perception Point raised $2 million in a seed round led by SOMV.
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Visa’s New Innovation Lab In Tel Aviv To Tap Into FinTech Startups

February 13, 2018 | Visa announced that it is launching a new innovation studio in Tel Aviv this week, which will serve as a shared space for the US multinational corporation to work with Israeli FinTech startups “developing the next generation of payment solutions,” Visa said in a statement. The studio will be located at Visa’s offices on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv, in the heart of the city’s financial scene. The company announced that it has selected four Israeli companies for immediate collaboration: AU10TIX, which automates customer ID authentication and onboarding initiation; HopOn, which has developed an innovative mobile payment and ticketing platform for public transportation; Idomoo, which offers personalized video as a service platform, and which in partnership with Arkia Israeli Airlines and Visa launched a local marketing campaign that addressed passengers with personalized videos on the advantages of using a Visa card at tourism destinations; and Personetics, which offers AI-powered cognitive banking solutions that allow for personalized customer experiences. Visa has innovation studios in Berlin, Dubai, London, Miami, New York City, San Francisco, San Paolo, Singapore, and Stockholm. The Tel Aviv studio will “streamline Visa’s integration with the local fintech start-ups, and enhance the collaboration with the local venture capital funds, other fintech centers, as well as Visa partners and customers in Israel and abroad,” the company says. Shahar Friedman, the head of the new studio and the acting general manager for Visa in Israel said, “Visa’s Innovation Studio is uniquely positioned to engage with Israel’s unparalleled fintech ecosystem as a gateway to thousands of Visa clients and retailers worldwide, who look for solutions to their challenges, or new ways to differentiate themselves in their competitive landscapes.”
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February 12, 2018 | Israeli entrepreneur Hila Ovil-Brenner has been appointed the new managing director of the Tel Aviv-based Barclays Accelerator, powered by the Techstars program, the two companies announced in a joint statement. Ovil-Brenner will manage the three-month accelerator, a unique international program for startups in the fields of cybersecurity and financial technology. Ovil-Brenner, a serial entrepreneur, is the founder of the WhiteSmoke Software company, and Yazamiyot, Israel’s largest community for female entrepreneurs. She also set up Google Campus for Moms, an international innovation program for new mothers on maternity leave, run jointly by Yazamiyot and Google. The Barclays Accelerator, launched in 2016, is a unique partnership between the British multinational bank and Techstars. It offers ten selected startups and entrepreneurs access to a wealth of resources, including experts, mentors, and investors in the fields of cybersecurity, insurance tech, fintech, and enterprise software as part of the 13-week program. The startups also have free access to the Rise Tel Aviv co-working space., and can draw up to $120,000 of investment from Techstars. Applications for the Barclays Accelerator close on February 25. The program will kick off on May 27 and conclude with a Demo Day on September 5 of this year.
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February 12, 2018 | The UK Israel Tech Hub, based at the British Embassy in Israel, announced the launch of the UK Israel Dangoor Health Initiative, a new accelerator aimed at connecting Israeli startups in the digital health field with the UK National Health Service (NHS). The British Ambassador to Israel, David Quarrey, will be hosting an event on Monday to launch the program. The accelerator will select at least two early-stage digital health startups each semester and provide them with the guidance and tools to navigate the UK’s health system. It is backed by British-Jewish philanthropist David Dangoor, son of Sir Naim Dangoor, and is named after the family. Dangoor told the British daily Jewish News this week, “we are absolutely at the threshold of a healthcare revolution and I’m hoping that Israel and the UK will be at the forefront of that, hand-in-hand.” The UK Israel Tech Hub is working on the program together with the IBM Alpha Zone accelerator, which will prepare and deliver those startups through their 20-week deep immersion program, and DigitalHealth.London, a program aimed to speed up development and digital innovations across healthcare and adopted by the NHS. Israeli digital health startups will be chosen by the IBM accelerator and DigitalHealth.London. The program will run for four semesters over two years.
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February 12, 2018 | Israeli cleantech startup MercuRemoval won first place in the seed track of the 2017 Global Ideas competition at the Cleantech Open awards, held in Los Angeles last week, the company announced in a statement. The environmental firm has developed a unique technology, under the exclusive license of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, for the removal of mercury emitted by gasses of various industrial processes. The Cleantech Open Global Ideas program is a global search for the most promising clean-technology ideas and is held annually in conjunction with Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW.) The runner-up in this competition was Matteco, a German startup manufacturing high-quality rubber products from recycled scrap tires. Cleantech Open is the world’s largest accelerator of early-stage clean technology companies and since 2005, has trained and supported 1,2000 early-stage cleantech startup ventures. In 2017, the accelerator became a program of the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator (LACI.)
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Israeli Fintech Startup Behalf Raises $150M

February 11, 2018 | On-demand financing company Behalf, which provides loans and on-demand payment tools to large and small business in the US, has secured $150 million in debt financing, the company announced last week. The round was led by a private investment fund managed by Soros Fund Management. Viola Credit of Israeli-based Viola Group also participated in the round. Both companies also made a private equity investment in Behalf. This replaces the $100 million in debt previously raised by the company. Brothers Benjy and Shai Feinberg founded Behalf in Ra’anana, Israel, along with Jeremy Esekow in 2011. The company’s software tech, based on big data, predictive analysis, and algorithms, allows users to get cash advances on the spot with flexible repayment terms.

AI-Powered Catering Startup Platterz Raises $15M

February 11, 2018 | Toronto-based AI-powered corporate catering platform Platterz has recently closed a $15 million Series A funding round led by Tel Aviv-based firm Aleph Venture Capital, the company announced this month. The ‘predictive meal builder’ platform providing on-demand catering options for corporate lunches, meetings, and events, plans to use the funds to “accelerate product development and global expansion in 2018”, according to a statement from the company. Platterz was founded by Israelis Eran Henig and Yishay Waxman, who came together when a mutual friend introduced the two entrepreneurs, the Financial Post reported in 2016. Both had already exited other tech companies. Aleph is also the venture capital fund with investors behind WeWork and Lemonade. Other investors in the Platterz investment round include existing investors AltaIR Capital and Globalive Capital.

Taiwan Science Ministry To Set Up Tech Division In Israel

February 11, 2018 | Taiwan’s Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) announced that it will be launching a new tech division in Israel, expected to be in operation this summer, according to a report in the Taipei Times. A source in the ministry, speaking to the news site on condition of anonymity, said, “Taiwan and Israel are very similar — both are densely populated and have limited resources,” adding that Taiwan is seeking to draw on Israeli research and expertise on artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and biomedical tech, and its experience in developing innovative business models. The official said Taiwan will send local talent to Israel to work in the high-tech field through the ministry’s “Learn, Explore, Aspire, Pioneer” program, which sends persons under 40 years of age to the US’s Silicon Valley and France for 6-to-12-month internships. The ministry has 16 overseas tech divisions that work with Taiwan’s Foreign Affairs offices abroad.

Israel Is 3rd Most Educated Country In The World

February 9, 2018 | The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, an economic organization with 35 member countries creating policies to improve economic and social well-being around the world, has ranked Israel as the 3rd most educated country in adult education of 10 listed countries, above the United States, which came in 6th place. The OECD looks at adult education level as defined by the highest level of education completed by the 25-64-year-old population in three areas: below upper-secondary, upper secondary and tertiary education in the form of a two-year degree, four-year degree or vocational program. According to the OECD, 49.90 percent of Israeli adults between the age of 25 and 64 have completed some kind of adult education, almost 4 percent above the US. Canada ranked as the most educated country with 56.27 percent and Japan came in second place with 50.50 percent. Other countries on the list included South Korea in 4th place, the United Kingdom in 5th, Australia, 7th, Finland, 8th, Norway, 9th, and Luxembourg, 10th.

5 Israeli Universities In Top 200 Asia University Rankings For 2018

February 8, 2018 | Five Israeli universities — Tel Aviv University, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, the University of Haifa, and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev — ranked in the top 200 of the 350 institutions published in the Times Higher Education Asia University Rankings 2018 this week. The 6th annual Asia University Rankings 2018 published by Times Higher Education weekly magazine ranks the top 350 institutions from 25 countries/regions based on the same criteria as the World University Rankings, but “recalibrated to reflect the attributes of Asia’s institutions,” Times Higher Education said. Tel Aviv University was the highest-ranked Israeli higher education institution, taking the 25th spot in the rankings, but slipping three spots from last year’s rankings. Hebrew University took the 27th spot, while Technion ranked 41st. The University of Haifa took the 100th place and the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Beersheba was in the 104th spot. The rankings for these institutions are based on 13 performance indicators across areas that include teaching, research, international outlook and more. The National University of Singapore took the #1 spot for the third year in a row. China’s Tsinghua University and Peking University — both institutions that collaborate with Tel Aviv University — came in 2nd and 3rd place behind the University of Singapore.
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Israel Diamond Exchange Launching Two Cryptocurrencies

February 8, 2018 | The Israel Diamond Exchange is launching two separate digital currencies, Reuters reported this week, in an effort to revive the industry, make trading more efficient, and more transparent. Eli Avidar, managing director of the exchange, told Reuters, “This industry is facing challenges, and this is going to in a lot of aspects address those challenges … the profitability element of the business, the speed of doing business, money laundering aspects and the problematic elements of banking nowadays. The first coin will be known as the Cut, and will be “available only to dealers on a peer-to-peer basis,” with traders from around the world being eligible to “receive digital wallets after being vetted by the exchange, similar to today’s background checks,” according to the report. This aims to solve money transfers between traders and retailers. Pre-sale of the coin started this week and use of it will commence over the coming weeks, Avishai Shoushan, CEO of the year-old CARATS.IO, which created the coins for the exchange, told Reuters. The second coin, Carat, will be issued later this year and is meant “for institutional and retail investors who want to invest in the diamond market without taking possession of physical diamonds,” the report said. “We are creating a way for people to invest in the market without actually buying and selling diamonds,” Shoushan explained.
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February 7, 2018 | Florida-based medical device company Sensus Healthcare, a developer of non-invasive treatment of non-melanoma skin cancers using superficial radiation therapy (SRT), announced on Wednesday that it was opening an office in Tel Aviv to expand its footprint in the Middle East and Europe. Sensus Healthcare CEO Joe Sardano said opening an office in Israel, “the epicenter of cutting-edge aesthetic dermatology,” is an “obvious and natural next step” for the company as it seeks to bring its SRT-100 Vision systems, currently installed at Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva and Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv, to the world. Sensus Healthcare’s CTO Kal Fishman said, “A deeper foothold in Israel gives us access to collaborate with some of the most creative minds in the industry, which will ultimately help us to improve our technologies and expand our footprint across the globe.” He added, “Sensus’ commitment to non-invasive dermatological technology makes entering this progressive market a very logical choice.” The SRT-100 Vision system “features a unique integration of multimodality therapy and image-guidance technologies with software integration to provide enhanced precision, safety and quality in delivering SRT, electronic brachytherapy (eBx) and Grenz Ray therapy (GRT) in a seamlessly integrated and scalable platform,” according to a company statement. It received FDA clearance for the treatment of non-melanoma skin cancers and keloids in 2015.
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Houzz Acquires Israeli Startup IvyMark For Reported $40M

February 7, 2018 | The Israeli-founded interior design company Houzz, valued recently at $4 billion, has acquired an Israeli startup that developed a business management tool for designers and vendors for an undisclosed amount, but according to Globes report ranges between $30-40 million. Alon Cohen, Houzz co-founder and president, said in a press release, “IvyMark has built an incredible platform and team that align with our mission of providing the best experience for home renovation and design, by helping design professionals manage their business. We are excited to bring the power of IvyMark’s software and community to more professionals.” IvyMark, headquartered in New York with Tel Aviv offices, was founded in 2016 and previously raised $2.9 million from Disruptive VC, Pitango, and NFX. IvyMark cofounder Lee Rotenberg said the company was “delighted to join forces with Houzz, a natural fit for IvyMark when it comes to innovation, culture, and user base.” Alexandra Schinasi, also an IvyMark cofounder said, “Houzz will allow us to continue on our mission of modernizing the way interior designers do business, while introducing Ivy to a massive audience and opening the door to new opportunities.” Houzz is headquartered in Palo Alto.
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Amdocs, BGU Launch New AI Research Lab

February 7, 2018 | Ben-Gurion University and Israeli-founded multinational Amdocs have launched a joint research lab for cooperation on artificial intelligence and machine learning. The university’s Department of Software and Information Systems Engineering will work together with Amdocs “to further research on these critical issues,” Ben-Gurion University said in a statement. “We are excited about the launch of a new Amdocs-BGU research lab. The joint lab team will join forces to push the frontiers in these fields,” said Yaron Sverdlov, CIO of Amdocs, and Oleg Brodt, Head of Research and Development at BGU’s Cyber Security Research Center.
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Merck Launches Innovation Lab at Hebrew University of Jerusalem

February 7, 2018 | German pharmaceutical giant Merck has launched an innovation lab through its subsidiary Qlight Nanotech at the Edward J. Safra campus of Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the company announced on Monday. The lab “emphasizes Merck’s commitment to Israel and the collaboration with the Hebrew University, with the aim to expand its developmental efforts in nanotechnologies and materials,” a statement said. Qlight Nanotech was established through Yissum, the technology transfer company of Hebrew University and is supported by the Israel Innovation Authority. It partners Hebrew U’s Professor Uri Banin and Merck. Qlight was recognized in 2014 as “Nanotechnology Company of the Year,” by the Chief Scientist of Israel and was fully acquired by Merck in mid-2015. It focuses on the research and development of cadmium-free quantum materials for use in display applications and supports Merck’s development in liquid crystal display materials and OLED materials.

Israeli Healthcare Data Startup MDClone Raises $15M

February 6, 2018 | Israel’s MDClone, a Beersheba-based company providing healthcare data in real-time, announced on Monday it has raised $15 million in total funding from Tel Aviv-based seed stage venture capital firm OrbiMed Israel Partners and American VC firm Lightspeed Venture Partners. OrbiMed led the company’s initial seed investment round in 2016, while Lightspeed led funding in 2017. This news comes not long after MDClone’s recent announcement that has signed its first overseas agreement, a partnership with the Washington University School of Medicine to make healthcare data in St. Louis more accessible to researchers and healthcare professionals. Founded in 2016 by Israelis Boaz Gur-Lavie, Luz Erez, and Ziv Ofek, MDClone has developed a big-data solution for healthcare featuring cutting-edge technology for data representation and generation and a new approach to healthcare data access, privacy, analytics, and research.

Siemens AG Launches Tel Aviv Innovation Lab

February 6, 2018 | Siemens AG, the German-based multinational engineering and electronics conglomerate dealing with energy, transportation, and healthcare, has launched an innovation lab in Israel at SOSA co-working space in Tel Aviv under the name Siemens Dynamo, the company announced in a press release. “The new lab is no longer a hi-tech incubator, but a structured program designed to take innovation and accompany startups at various stages of development under one room, until the commercialization stage,” said Siemens Israel CEO Shmuel Feldel. Israeli startups in the program will be exposed to Siemens technologies. They will also have the chance to experiment in the production lines of large Israeli companies including Keter Plastic and Strauss. The lab will provide technical support, ongoing collaboration with Siemens experts in Israel and abroad, exposure to industrial solutions and challenges in the field, experience in existing manufacturing plants of well-known companies and more. Siemens is also connected with Israeli and international entrepreneurs, investors and more. The addition of these startups in the Siemens innovation lab could lead to their future acquisition by Siemens if their technologies match Siemens products and solutions. Israeli startups that are currently active in the lab include CoreTigo, a developer of wireless communication systems for control of industrial sensors, QualityLine, a technology for quality control of the production process, and Halo Digital, a digital platform for smart industry. Siemens has already invested about $992 million in 180 startups around the world. It operates Siemens Israel as a subsidiary of Siemens AG.

Walmart Delegation Said Headed To Israel For Talks On Local Branch

February 5, 2018 | A delegation from American retail giant Walmart is reportedly headed to Israel in the coming weeks for talks on the possibility of opening a local branch, business daily CTech by Calcalist reported on Monday, citing an interview with Israel’s National Economic Council Chairman Avi Simhon. Walmart will also look into possible investments in Israeli cyber technologies, Simhon told CTech. Simhon said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with senior Walmart executive John Furner on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland last month and conveyed the message that the government would be open to having a local Walmart presence. “We made it clear we are ready to ease regulatory burdens wherever possible to make the market more accessible to them,” Simhon was quoted as saying in a Bloomberg report on Sunday, “the door to Netanyahu’s office is open.” He told CTech, “Increasing the competitiveness of Israel’s retail market will only benefit the economy and the Israeli consumer.”

Israel’s Frutarom Acquires Israeli Biotechnology Research For $21M

February 4, 2018 | Israel-based flavor and fine ingredients company Frutarom today announced it has purchased 100 percent of shares in Israeli Biotech Research (IBR) for $21 million. The deal was financed through bank debt. This marks the first acquisition of the year for Frutarom, one of the world’s 10 largest companies in the field of flavors and natural specialty fine ingredients. Through the acquisition, Frutarom continues its efforts to actively pursue activities in algae-growth and active ingredients extraction for personal care and skin protection. Its goal is to establish its position as a leading global supplier of unique natural products and “develop a worldwide business in the growing and profitable fields of natural cosmetics,” Frutarom CEO Oi Yehudai said in a statement. Frutarom bought 12 companies in 2017 and has made 32 acquisitions since 2015. Founded in 1995, Israeli Biotech Research develops, manufactures and markets active ingredients for cosmetics and dietary supplement industries, with sales of $7.4 million in 2017.

Amdocs To Acquire US Content Services Provider Vubiquity

February 4, 2018 | Israeli software and services provider Amdocs announced last week it has entered into a “definitive agreement” to acquire US content monetization technology solutions firm Vubiquity for $224 million. The deal, which is still subject to “customary closing conditions,” will help “further expand our capabilities in the world of media and entertainment, which is increasingly converging,”Amdocs president and CEO Eli Gelman told Multichannel News last week. The acquisition will improve the Amdocs customer experience and entertainment offerings, thanks to Vubiquity’s content ecosystem expertise. “This acquisition uniquely positions Amdocs at the center of increased convergence across the content community and video distributors including major OTT providers,” Gelman said in a statement. “Our joint offerings address the media and entertainment industry’s challenge in balancing the incredible growth of content and the many ways to consume content with making programming easier, faster to deliver and ultimately watch, while also delivering profits.”

OurCrowd Launches $50M Fund For Sports Tech

February 1, 2018 | OurCrowd, a global equity crowdfunding platform, announced the launch of a $50 million fund focused on sports technology. The fund, OurCrowd’s 13th, is called ADvantage and is co-founded with leAD Sports, a global sports tech accelerator backed by the Adi Dassler Family Office (ADIFO). The fund will initially focus on 15 early-stage sports tech ventures, “including companies providing next-gen fan engagement and experience; solutions for connected athletes and communities; and startups in the derivative sports space, including eSports, new and fantasy sports,” OurCrowd said in a statement.